"Bang!"
A dull thud was heard, and a figure was instantly sent flying.
Xia Chen watched with interest as the person he had sent flying more than ten meters away was sent flying. He said calmly, " Filial Son Sword Squard! Luckily, I didn't miss this good show because of Blackbeard's interruption, otherwise, it would have been less fun!"
He had just emerged from the sea when he witnessed this classic scene from the original story. So without hesitation, he rode his Flying Nimbus over and kicked Squard, but he still wanted to see how Whitebeard planned to handle the situation.
So he didn't use much force, otherwise, a little more force would have finished this guy off! He had no liking for such an idiot who could be manipulated with just a few words!
Even though there aren't any tall ice walls around them right now, they could leave anytime they wanted, yet they still managed to be turned against them. They're really not thinking straight!
Although his ship is full of idiots who are always causing trouble, they all have a deep trust in each other, and things like sowing discord would never happen on their ship.
"Thanks, Xia Chen!"
Whitebeard first thanked Xia Chen, then looked intently at Squard. After a long while, he silently asked:
"Foolish son, why did you do that?"
Upon hearing Whitebeard's words, Squard excitedly jumped to his feet and demanded, " Whitebeard, are you still going to pretend now?"
Why didn't you tell me that Ace was Roger's son? You clearly knew that my crewmates were all killed by the Roger Pirates!
"And you've already planned this out, haven't you? Sacrificing the lives of our pirate crews to protect Ace and the Whitebeard Pirates, isn't that your goal?"
"What?!!"
Squard's words stunned all the Whitebeard Pirates fighting on the battlefield, who murmured in disbelief, "Is this true? Would Pops really do such a thing?"
For a moment, the morale of these pirate crews began to waver.
"Is that so?" The Whitebeard's gaze was deep and unfathomable.
Squard continued, "Since the assassination attempt on you failed, I accept it. Come on!"
Having said that, Squard stood there with his arms outstretched, closed his eyes, and looked as if he were calmly facing death.
Whitebeard walked towards him step by step, and most of the people on the battlefield stopped fighting and watched this scene.
Because what happens next could very well determine the course of the war!
A few seconds later, Whitebeard arrived in front of Squard and swung his arm at him.
!!!
Upon witnessing this scene, everyone on the battlefield held their breath, especially the pirates under Whitebeard's command, who dared not blink for even a moment.
But what happened next surprised them.
Instead of attacking Squard, Whitebeard pulled Squard into his arms and said in a deep voice:
"Foolish son, whether it's Ace or any of you, you're all my sons! Your pirate ship is right outside; you can leave whenever you want!"
" Ace is Roger's son, that's true, but should the son really have to pay for the father's debts? Think carefully about your relationship with Ace. How many battles have you fought side by side?"
So, no matter what you do, I won't blame you!
" Pops?"
Squard stiffly raised his head, and what came into view was the Whitebeard man's fatherly gaze.
In an instant, tears filled his eyes, and the hand holding the knife was trembling uncontrollably.
He stared at his hands in disbelief. What... what had he just done?
He actually believed the Navy's one-sided story and did such a thing! He attacked his own Pops and denied the brotherhood between himself and Ace...
All of this filled him with immense self-reproach. Thankfully, he hadn't harmed his Pops; otherwise, he would have felt guilty for the rest of his life. Thinking of this, Squard looked at Xia Chen with gratitude.
Xia Chen noticed his gaze but didn't look at him. He didn't want to have too much contact with such an idiot; it would lower his IQ!
Whitebeard slowly stood up and roared.
"As pirates, it's up to you to decide what you believe!"
"Oh!"
In an instant, all the pirates on the field became excited, their momentum even stronger than before.
"I knew Pops wouldn't do that. We remember all the good things Pops has done for us over the years!"
"These despicable navy men are trying to sow discord between us and Pops! Kill them!"
"Kill!"
"..."
Whitebeard turned his gaze to Sengoku in the distance and said quietly, "That's really your style, Sengoku!"
At this moment, Sengoku did not focus his gaze on Whitebeard, but instead stared hatefully at Xia Chen.
Xia Chen also felt the hateful gaze. He looked at Sengoku as well, then spread his hands in feigned helplessness.
Seeing this, Sengoku became even angrier. He should have killed Xia Chen at all costs when he first learned of Xia Chen's existence.
It wouldn't cause him so much trouble now; not only would it be difficult for him to handle, it would also make things difficult for Whitebeard to handle as well.
If Xia Chen hadn't intervened, his plan would have succeeded, and he would have definitely managed to get the already extremely weak-looking Whitebeard into drinking a cup of wine.
Unfortunately, we're only one step away now. Demon King Xia Chen, you truly deserve to die!!!
Xia Chen was completely unmoved by Sengoku's hateful gaze. There were plenty of people who hated him, so he didn't care about one more, since it posed no threat to him anyway.
Instead, Xia Chen is now more interested in Whitebeard's physical condition.
With his Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils, he could clearly see Whitebeard's current physical condition...
How should I put it? It's practically at its last gasp!
Even without this war, and with good medical care, he wouldn't have lived much longer in his condition. He had too many hidden injuries from his youth, which were now constantly ravaging his body in his old age.
This explains why Whitebeard couldn't dodge Squard's attacks in the original story; he initially thought it was because Whitebeard was unprepared for Squard.
Now that I've actually seen it, I realize that while that was part of the reason, the main reason was that my physical condition was extremely poor, making it impossible for me to react and dodge so easily.
However, thanks to his intervention, Whitebeard escaped the attack. So, how will his battle against Akainu unfold?
Xia Chen was very curious, and at the same time, he admired Whitebeard immensely. The title of the World's Strongest Man was indeed well-deserved.
To be able to overpower Akainu even when he was in such a bad state in the original work is truly impressive!
And now...
Xia Chen turned his gaze to a spot on the battlefield...